Abstract
The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool that enables the evaluation of the environmental performance of processes, products and services. In this work, the LCA is used to assess stages of the life cycle of polyethylene bottles. The raw materials (high density polyethylene, low density polyethylene, and, pigment) are acquired in the petrochemical pole of Recife, PE and transported to Teresina, PI by road transport, where they are using the process of blow molding. After that, the bottles are distributed to the municipality of Parnaíba, PI. Primary data were collected in a plastic processing factory in Teresina, PI and modeled using SimaPro software version 8.0.3.1 PhD in conjunction with the information obtained from the Ecoinvent 3 and USLCI libraries. The Impact Assessment was carried out according to the model Recipe Midpoint (E). It was observed that the production process in the manufacturing factory, that demand a high consumption of electricity, stood out to contribution to impact categories; followed by transportation of raw materials and the final product due to the use of diesel fuel. Improving the environmental performance of plastic bottles made in Teresina, PI can be achieved with the implementation of energy efficiency in the factory itself.
Keywords:
Life Cycle Assessment; environmental impacts; polyethylene bottles
Thumbnail
Thumbnail
